In addition to our $100 savings offer on London B&Bs, this recent article in Frommer's explains some of the other savings you can enjoy due to a much stronger dollar:
"London has lately been scarily expensive -- from the huge airport tax that bumps up your airfare to Heathrow, to the mind-bogglingly high single-ride Tube fare, to the requisite £37 afternoon tea at The Ritz. Americans have become used to marauding gangs of English tourists visiting U.S. shores and department stores, grinning ear to ear at the offensively low cost of clothing compared to their super inflated pound prices, but are the tables turning? Is it time that Americans reclaimed the right to visit London and still be able to smile when the bill arrives?"Let's begin with the currency issue; after all it is the exchange rate that often determines whether or not we choose to travel to a destination. The pound sterling began 2008 at $1.985 and it went on to notch up a high of $2.022 in March. But in August, it commenced its drastic decline to end the year at $1.468, a dive of almost 27%. It is now hovering at around $1.41, a far more reasonable option for those of us who need to convert our greenbacks, and a drop of over 30% since the pound's peak last year. For current exchange rates check www.xe.com. Airfares to London also seem to have dropped with both British and U.S. based carriers offering discounted flights for spring and even summer travel.
"Currently, you can travel mid-week during March and April on either British Airways or Virgin Atlantic and pay as little as $439 for a non-stop round-trip flight from New York (or Newark) to London Heathrow -- including taxes. From May, the flight prices go up somewhat and of course summer fares see another increase, but in general fares seem to be at least 20% less than they were during the same period last year. You'll also notice in the airfare breakdown that the flight price is often less than the applicable taxes so when comparing website prices, make sure you factor in the total price of flight plus taxes. If you are willing to sometimes stop en route, www.vayama.com can hook you up with some cheap airfares out of various cities."